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Boston teacher recalls harrowing moments as shots ring out at D.C. museum

E-mail|Link|Comments () June 10, 2009 04:23 PM

By Peter Schworm, Globe Staff

When the shots first rang out, sending a deafening echo through the vast lobby of the Holocaust Museum, Chris Dupuis thought that something large had crashed to the floor. But when the popping sound persisted, sending waves of screaming people diving for cover and sprinting away from the museum entrance, Dupuis realized it was gunfire.

Teacher Chris Dupuis of MATCH Charter Public High School talks about hearing the shooting

"It was so loud, and it didn't stop," said Dupuis, who was sitting on a lobby bench only 15 feet from the museum entrance when a lone gunman opened fire in the museum this afternoon. "That was when we knew something was wrong. Everyone just started screaming and running as fast as they could. People were running in every direction, trying to hit the ground. We didn't know what to do or where to go."

Dupuis, a teacher with the Match Charter Public High School in Boston was among 12 teachers chaperoning 33 students on a trip to the museum. He recounted the harrowing scene this afternoon by phone as the group called loved ones to let them know they were safe.

"The students were extremely shaken up, especially since we didn't have everyone together immediately," he said. "There was a lot of crying, a lot of anxious calls home to their parents."

The school canceled the rest of the day's scheduled activities, which included a visit to Howard University.

"We're going to need some time to process all this," he said.